
Happy Thursday! Costume season is officially here, and your weekend kicks off Friday night (Oct 16) with free trick-or-treating in downtown West Bend. Saturday (Oct 17) brings a kids’ costume fun walk in Saukville, a free Howl-O-Ween pet fest in Germantown, and live music at a Mequon pumpkin farm. On Sunday (Oct 18), meet tarantulas and owls at Schlitz Audubon’s Species Spooktacular, or grab pumpkins and a free hayride in Cedarburg. Further down: winter youth sports sign-ups worth putting on the calendar now, a cozy Port Washington coffee stop, a family-run Cedarburg orchard where the donuts are made fresh on site, and a quick vote on your fall farm favorites. Dig out the costume bin and go make a memory.

This Weekend: Oct 16–18

Friday Night, Oct 16
Downtown West Bend Trick-or-Treat — Fri 5–7pm, downtown West Bend. FREE. Bring a treat bag and look for pumpkins in shop windows.
Saturday, Oct 17
Saukville Scare Kids’ Trick-or-Treat Fun Walk — Sat 8:30–9am, Grady Park, Saukville. $5 (kids 12 and under). A short costumed walk with four treat stops; register by Fri 11:59pm.
Germantown Howl-O-Ween Pet Fest — Sat 10am–2pm, Firemen’s Park, Germantown. FREE. Pet costume contest, police K9 demo and kids activities; leashed pups welcome.
Creekside Valley Farm — Daily 9am–6pm, Mequon. Free admission and pumpkin patch (corn maze $6). Live music Sat and Sun.

Sunday, Oct 18
Species Spooktacular at Schlitz Audubon — Sun 10am–3pm, Bayside. $18 ($12 members, 2 and under free). Come in costume and meet live tarantulas, snakes and raptors.
Cedarburg Creek Farm — Daily 10am–6pm, Cedarburg. Free admission and hay wagon rides. Pick-your-own pumpkins, a petting zoo and a kids’ maze.
Get Your Kids Involved

Winter sign-ups are opening (and a few are closing) right now. Here are five worth a look before the snow flies:
Cedarburg Youth Basketball League (Grades 4–8) — Cedarburg Parks & Rec. Register by Fri Oct 23. $160. There’s a coed 4th–5th grade league plus separate 6th–8th grade boys and girls leagues. Skills test and scrimmage Sat Nov 7, practices start the week of Nov 30, and games run Jan–Mar on weekends. A separate league registration form is required. Questions? Call 262-375-7611.
Bucks Little Dribblers (Ages 4–10) — Grafton Parks & Rec. Saturdays Jan 9–30, 2027, 10:30–11:30am, Kennedy Elementary Gym. $120. Includes a jersey, a Bucks basketball, a game ticket and a chance to show off skills at a Bucks home game this season.
Mighty Mites Soccer (Ages 3–6 and 7–10) — Cedarburg Parks & Rec, run by Funtastics Soccer, at Armbruster Community Gym. Session 1 is Saturdays Jan 9–30, 2027, and Session 2 is Feb 27–Mar 20. Ages 3–6 play 8:30–9:15am and ages 7–10 play 9:30–10:15am. $45 per session.
Red Cross Swim Lessons, Session 2 — Grafton Parks & Rec at the Grafton High School pool. Saturdays Jan 9–Feb 27, 2027. Preschool levels (ages 4–5) swim 10–10:30am and Levels 1–3 swim 10:45–11:30am. $50 residents, $69 non-residents.
Feith Family YMCA Winter 1 (Port Washington) — Kettle Moraine YMCA, 465 Northwoods Rd. Swim, youth sports, gymnastics and more. Registration opens Mon Nov 23 for members and Mon Nov 30 for non-members. The session runs Jan 4–Feb 28, 2027. Set a reminder, because popular classes fill fast.

Top Coffee Shop
Java Dock Cafe (Port Washington) — 116 W. Grand Ave., downtown Port. A family-owned community café pouring handcrafted drinks with beans from local roasters, plus made-from-scratch food built on local ingredients. Grab the cozy loft seating upstairs or use the outdoor walk-up window. It’s a natural stop after Saturday’s Saukville fun walk. Open Sat–Sun 7am–3pm (kitchen until 2pm), Mon–Thu 6am–6pm and Fri 6am–4pm.
Neighbor Worth Knowing
Interfaith Caregivers of Washington County (West Bend) — Their volunteers help seniors stay independent at home with rides to medical appointments and the pharmacy, grocery runs, yard help, snow shoveling and friendly visits. They welcome both groups and solo volunteers, whether you have an hour or a whole day, so it’s worth asking about a family or group project as the leaves (and soon the snow) start to fall. Volunteers attend a short orientation first. Call 262-365-0902.
Featured Local Business: Honey Creek Orchard (Cedarburg)

Honey Creek Orchard — 8210 Pioneer Rd., Cedarburg. Family owned and operated, and open now for the fall season. The family purchased this farm to make memories with their children while teaching them where their food comes from. This weekend, pick out a pumpkin, grab apple donuts made fresh on site and cider pressed from their own apples, then fill a bag from 2,500+ hand-planted apple and pear trees. Kids can climb the farm tractors, visit the animals and explore Western Town. Admission $10.49 (ages 2+); apple bags $11–$20. Sat 9am–6pm, Sun 10am–5pm (closed Tuesdays).
Local Business Shout-Out
Black Birch Co. (Grafton) — Owner Jamie Beiderwieden’s tiny-house mobile boutique brings casual, comfortable everyday women’s styles to pop-ups all over Wisconsin (it got its start with toddler tees). Shop online anytime, with local pickup if you’re in Ozaukee County.
Your Vote: Fall Farm Favorites
Tap your picks below. We’ll share the results in the next issue.
Best family farm for pumpkins?
Best family farm for apples?
What makes the perfect farm stop?
Would you come to a family fall concert at a local farm?
Next Issue: Halloween Weekend, Oct 30–Nov 1
Cedarburg Pumpkin Walk — Sat Oct 31, 5–9pm, downtown Cedarburg along Washington Ave. FREE. Bring your carved pumpkin to light up downtown, and come in costume. Some spots may hand out treats.
Port Washington Halloween Scavenger Hunt — Sat Oct 31. FREE for kids 16 and under. Find the Halloween symbols in downtown shop windows, then pick up a goodie bag at the library (10am–3pm, while supplies last).
Can’t wait two weeks? Mark these now: Riveredge Trails & Treats (Fri Oct 23, ages 2–12, pre-register by Oct 22), Habitat Haunting at Mequon Nature Preserve (Sat Oct 24, 11am, one free ticket per family), Foxtown Fall Family Fun Day (Sat Oct 24, 11am–4pm, Foxtown Station in Mequon, free entry; activity wristbands sold that day), the Whitefish Bay Great Pumpkin Festival (drop off your carved pumpkin before Oct 28; lit Oct 28–31, 6–9pm) and Thiensville’s Nightmare on Elm Street (Thu Oct 29, 4–7pm).
See you in two weeks, for Halloween! Spot an event other families should know about? Reply to this email. A real person reads every note.
— Cedar & Shore

